High-fat diet linked to prostate disease

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have discovered
another reason to think twice before hitting the fast-food drive-thru—a link
between high-fat diets and prostate cancer.

Diet is considered one of the most controllable risk factors for prostate cancer—
which is the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men—and other
prostate diseases like benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostatitis.

High-fat diets have long been connected to increased risk for a variety of health
problems, from heart disease to diabetes to stroke. A research team led by Sanjay
Gupta, PhD, the Carter Kissell Associate Professor and research director in the
Department of Urology, conducted a study to understand the disastrous effects
an unhealthy diet can have on the prostate. The study builds on previous work
demonstrating that a protein complex called nuclear factor kappa B is activated by
inflammation and stress and is related to tumor progression in prostate cancer.

After being fed a high-fat diet for intervals of four, eight and 12 weeks, mice
in the study had significant increases in prostate weight and higher levels of
inflammation compared with mice fed a regular diet. The results are direct evidence
that a high-fat diet can cause inflammation and oxidative stress that can lead to a
range of prostate problems, including cancer, BPH and prostatitis, some of the most
common disorders affecting adult men.

The study strengthens the link between the Western-style high-fat diet,
often criticized for its reliance on red meat and processed convenience foods, as a
potential cause of prostatic diseases, Gupta says.

The study was supported by grants from the National Cancer Institute, the
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and the Sullivan
Foundation for the Study of Prostatitis.